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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"?
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 3, 2002 4:44:00 AM
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anOHPT
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I'll add my $.02 USD on this one.
No. Emphatically, unequivically no. There is a vast difference between this annoying entry-level DPT designation and a true "Doctorate".
There is the matter of the dissertation and its defense, as mentioned by another. Years of specialized study, research, hardwork and effort to EARN the title of "PhD". Even some preachers like to call themselves a Dr.!
This DPT B*&^#$%t is absurd. If I had wanted to make diagnoses, be a primary care provider and have "direct access" I would have taken the MCAT instead of the GRE, gone to school four years instead of three, done a lengthy residency instead of short internships, passed multiple board exams instead of one multiple choice test, then hung out a shingle with the rightfully EARNED title of "Dr." ahead of my name.
I can't wait for the malpractice litigation to start flying when all these doctors of physical therapy start pronouncing musculoskeletal diagnoses on pathologies that are WAY out of the scope of their training.
I did not train as a physician, I trained as a physical therapist, an allied health professional. I do not want the responsibility and liability that comes with being a primary care provider.
In reviewing the curriculum of one of these vaunted DPT programs, it was clear that I learned the EXACT SAME material just five years ago. Yet, I am a MSPT. Should I not have the same priviledges?
This is egomania unbridled and it will be a source of trouble for PT's.
That is why, may the gods help me, I'll be out of this fruity profession ASAP.
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 3, 2002 4:26:00 PM
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PTstud
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From: Texas
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Its so sad that Im so excited about starting my PT curriculum and somebody that's practicing wants to get out. Instead of embracing the new challenges and facing the change up front, a PT is running away. Just when it seems like PT is starting to evolve and eventually (and hopefully) acquire us the title and privilidges of primary care practitioners, do those that don't want to carry the responsibility run away. We need the current PTs to fight for the advancement of our profession, and then current students like myself will continue the progress when we are out.If we want to be where we want to be we must take risks, or nothing will be done. I believe that these changes about to take place will weed out the weak within the PT profession. anOHPT, so long.
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 4, 2002 7:04:00 AM
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PTupdate.com
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The replies and discussion have been great, until the last very childish response, which I will not dignify with an answer regarding my credentials.
I have been out of school for 10 years, and have seen continued progression in the quality of the education via the interns I mentor from multiple universities. There is no doubt that the education these professionals are recieving today is more advanced than what I had, and I am impressed.
However, the "doctor" title, while definitely earned, needs to be carefully used in a medical environment. A man walking down the hall of the university with a PhD in history is called "doctor", but this is never mistaken for a medical doctor. However, a PT walking through the hospital with a white coat and stethascope around the neck being called "doctor" will confuse the patients. How many times have we seen a patient that was seen by a PA-C or nurse practitioner, yet the patient thought it was a physician? All they know is someone that "looked" like a doctor, in a medical environment, looked at them, diagnosed them, possibly wrote them a prescription, etc.
When I see patients, I tell them I am a physical therapist...period. I would do this regardless of the intials after my name, be it MPT, MSPT, DPT, etc.
John Duffy, PT OCS
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 4, 2002 8:59:00 AM
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PTstud
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From: Texas
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by DPT:
Dear PTupdate.com sure you are not P.T i think u r ATC or massage therapiest.
you know your question is stupid .
To all P.T's Plz don't response to like this farcical discussion.
To every one he is not P.T's ,you have to know the P.T's in some countries calling him Doctor e.g,India,Pakistan,Egypt,Saudi Arabia ..
DPT = P.T but with D.
[/QUOTE]
"DPT", you need to review your elementary school grammar books. Just make sure you dont make a fool of yourself again, you're not even a DPT.
M
[This message has been edited by PTstud (edited May 04, 2002).]
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 5, 2002 8:13:00 AM
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PT_LOVER
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From: Riyadh
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hi there
i dont know why you are give imprtant for this subject ,, i tell you to take it easy if the PT`s calls DR or Not
here in saudi arabia alot of patient call me DR because they dont know who am i , here in saudi arabia and alot of gulf and arabic countries, when the patient see any profession even he is technecian wearing a lab coat, they call him DR,
some patient in PT department call me the massage man !!!!!!!!!! but i dont concern them [IMG]http://www.rehabedge.com/forums/smile.gif[/IMG]
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 6, 2002 2:42:00 AM
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anOHPT
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It is not a matter of running away, it is a matter of seeing the writing on the wall. A title does not the practitioner make. I embrace all change that is valuable. I welcome evidence based practice and support efforts to bring our profession out of the dark ages.
In fact, shock! I love what I do! I enjoy doing this work. However, that cannot imply that I support blindly misguided and damaging attempts by the nat'l organization to elevate the status of this profession beyond what is necessary.
As I said, I received the exact same training as a DPT. My patients benefit from my education and ever evolving skills. I don't need to pretend that I'm something I'm not.
That reminds me of a joke:
A physician dies and is waiting in line at the pearly gates. After waiting for sometime, he marches up to the front and demands entrance saying "I'm a doctor! I spent my life saving lives and serving mankind!" St. Peter tells him to wait his turn at the back of the line. Suddenly, a fellow in a lab coat and stethescope walks right past him and the entire line and enters Heaven without so much as a nod of the head. The enraged Dr. scurries up to St. Peter and demands an explanation. St. Peter says "Oh, that's God. He just likes to play doctor."
Be careful of what you wish for. If you want to be a PCP, be prepared to accept ALL the responsibility and liability that comes with it. There is a reason why physicians spend so much time in training. Even with my training in differential diagnosis, I will not pretend to know what a doctor is trained, and thusly, paid to know.
A ship can have only one captain. When a profession advocates its members affect the title of captain without the training, the ship is sure to founder and take the pretenders with it.
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 6, 2002 3:16:00 AM
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Andrew M. Ball MS MBA PT
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The entry-level is a moving target. If you graduated last year with an MPT, then sure, your skills will be almost identical to that of a DPT . . . but will be far superior in terms of pharmacology, imaging, dif. dx. etc. than an MPT who graduated 10 years ago.
5 to 10 years from now, potential employers are going to inappropriately lump you in with the MPTs with years of "experience" that due to their lack of evidence-based clinical reasoning skills, and lack of contemporary skills as listed above, really have the same year of experience many, many, many times over.
If you're in this group of therapists who graduated with an MPT within the past 5 to 10 years, you should consider the t-DPT, otherwise you will be left out --- not due to skill necessarily, but due to the impression among the masses that your MPT isn't worth any more than the first wave of MPTs.
Drew
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 6, 2002 6:18:00 AM
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anOHPT
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Mr. Ball,
You are absolutely correct. Educational advances have made even what I learned 5 years ago old news.
Do those advancements require the title of DPT to be valid? No. Also, the argument seems to imply that clinicians are static once they have a diploma in hand and that is not always the case.
I have evidence based clinical reasoning skills, differential diagnosis skills, training in pharmacology, etc. that I work at upgrading as much as possible.
The title will not benefit me or my patients. It will cost me, however. That's another rub.
Even the APTA admits that it cannot provide evidence- ironic, isn't it?, that the title of DPT will result in any actual benefit to the profession, patients or the medical community at large.
Why, then, pursue something so dubious in merit? We as a profession should be concerned with protecting our "turf" from incursions by DC, ATC's, etc, as well as placing our practice on solid evidential ground.
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 6, 2002 7:08:00 AM
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Andrew M. Ball MS MBA PT
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SJ,
The DPT is a personal decision that every therapist must make for themselves. No one is telling you that you must go back to school. In fact, for the over 45 crowd, I wouldn't advise it --- you'll likely not get much bang for your buck.
You are assuming that PTs without pharmacology, drug delivery, dif. dx., imaging, rural emergency healthcare procedures would understand and value the additional training. You yourself are an excellent example of how this wouldn't be the case, and how "good interviewing skills" wouldn't be enough to hire beyond staus quo.
Your assessment that the DPT won't offer you anything is one that I simply don't agree with. You may, however, feel that it doesn't offer you ENOUGH at this stage of your career, and that's fine.
As for imaging, which we keep coming back to, a short-sightedness regarding imaging among rank-and-file is distresing. PT's in the military can order and read radiographs, and for that reason alone, it should be included in our education. Furthermore, for example, with radiographic imaging, we could as PT's be able to tell which children with autism are likely to benefit from SI than those that wouldn't . . . but that assumes that peds PT's keep on current basic science literature. I can see, therefore, why PT's that are truly evidence-based would be all for diagnostic imaging, but also how the more artistic oriented wouldn't much care.
There is another reason to learn imaging --- PR and increased value within the healthcare community. To some younger therapists, (my other half, for example - now nearing completion of her DPT) the ability to read radiographs and converse, for example, with neurologists in the rehab hospital on THEIR level has TREMENDOUS positive implication upon the PT/MD relationship. When a student DPT is talking in an interactive and collegial manner to the MD about minor swelling or bruising in a specific area of the brain, and how the most likely impact is a temporary (vs. permanent) effect upon motoric (as opposed to sensory) functioning of the foot, several things begin to happen:
1. The MD evolves a real respect for PT and what can be offered during the DIAGNOSTIC process. As a result, the relationship and training of the DPT takes on a different tone in an interdisciplinary setting.
2. The "experienced" PT's joke about how they looked at the radiograph and said, "Yeah, that's the brain" or "Yeah, that's the cortex." Not, for one second realizing the pejorative impact that they are having in condemning PT to remaining an occupation filled by non-professional subordinate technicians . . . or if they do realize their incompotence, joking in an effort to protect their ego from the realization of their own inabilities in such an area. That's why we often hear complaints about, "No better clinical skills," from people (e.g. clinicians) who are generally not qualified to make such an assessment.
In summary, some therapists wish to remain technicians, and avoid the increased responsibility previously mentioned on this thread . . . and that's okay. Others (DPTs primarily) want to be true professionals, valued for their diagnostic skills, relative to applied neuromuscular care within the healthcare environment. It's not a money issue, it's an issue of the MD/DPT relationship.
This relationship is DIFFERENT than the "I have a great relationship with the physicians that refer to me." Kind of relationship that many of you would counter with. It's the difference between the "good relationship" that some of you have with your clinical colleagues versus your secretarial staff. Both cordial, but very different.
If you want to remain being viewed as a profesional technician, that's fine. Some therapists, DPT's in particilar, want a different kind of relationship with the healthcare community.
As for the comments of others:
Does complete entry-level knowledge require the title of DPT to be valid? No, of course not, but it IS required for validity without question. More DPT's than MPT's will have the holes in their entry-level education patched, and as such, MD's perceptions of your skills will be guided by your degree, not by taking the time (which none of them have) to get to know the differences in abilities from therapist to therapist.
I'm not implying that most clinicians are static once they have a diploma in hand. I'm flat out telling you that. Statistics show that PT's and OT's get the majority of their "dynamic" post-graduate training through continuing education, which is generally 5 years dated with respect to the literature, and generally is more theory-based than evidence-based.
The title won't benefit you today, that's true, but it will benefit you tomorrow. It will cost you, but not enough to make it out of the question. With your training, you'd likely take the PTET ($500), find little to no holes in your entry-level education, and be awarded the DPT upon completion of one on-line course (such as emergency rural health procedures) all for about $1200.
Let me think . . . $1700 for a DPT or 2 to 3 non evidence-based continuing education courses. Rejection of the DPT is a mistake given the early stage of your career.
Finally, the point about increased responsibility is a good one. I too have a problem with DPT students at several very well known insitutions being trained to think that upon graduation, they will be valued as primary care practitioners in metro areas. Such is simply not the case. The PCpractitioner role will initially come into play in rural areas only where there is no other healthcare professional for hundreds of miles. In that vein, all allied heatlh professionals, not just PT's should be trained to set bones, deliver babies, administer life-saving drugs, in emergent situations AND UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF A PHYSICIAN (in much the same way that a PA or NP can do these things provided that the notes are viewed and signed by an MD within 24 hours). Just a thought.
[This message has been edited by Andrew M. Ball MS MBA PT (edited May 06, 2002).]
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 6, 2002 4:35:00 PM
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mnpt
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Amen anOHPT-you said it well. Along with DPT wanting to be the PCP comes a liability that I do not feel we are ready for, nor do I want it in that situation.
Drew you bring up an iteresting point about the rural vs. metro setting that I didn't consider in regards to the DPT. I live in the north woods of MN and our general docs miss the boat a lot with diagnosis of patients (I mean BAD)and it seems something is "missing" that with a little more training, I feel I could fill that void and really feel comfortable with what I am doing. I guess it depends what health care environment you are in. In the metro situation, there is so many other professionals who fill these voids.
[This message has been edited by mnpt (edited May 06, 2002).]
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 6, 2002 8:32:00 PM
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Bournephysio
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In Canada, all provinces have direct access (I checked) so all of us can be direct care practitioners. Currently, most of the physiotherapy programs here are transitioning from B.Sc. to M.Sc. We (with our lowly B.Sc.s) are very well trained on what we can and cannot treat and when to refer. I am curious as to what you (those against direct access) think is missing from your training? Why do you need an MD referral? Do you not know how to screen your patients? Liability wise, you should be held liable if you missed something whether or not you had a doctor's referral. I worked in Michigan for a bit and I couldn't stand having doctors tell me what to do. I also didn't find their referrals any more appropriate than what I get now. This really isn't a DPT issue. All physiotherapists should be comfortable with direct access. If you are not, you may want to consider another profession. I would be afraid to treat patients without these skills.
As for "protecting our "turf" from incursions by DC, ATC's, etc, as well as placing our practice on solid evidential ground." I don't see a better way than improving our entry level education. I have learned a lot since graduating much of which could be taught in an entry level program.
Here is where I disagree with Andrew. I have found continuing ed courses to be quite up to date. In fact I have heard of at least one DPT program which has incorporated courses from the Canadian manual therapy system.
I started writing this before bobcat's response. I agree with him about delivering babies. Although we can be very helpful during and after pregnancy (PTs were involved in teaching Lamaze classes from the start). The only areas I see us expanding our scope antiinflam meds and imaging. Currently, I think we are trained well enough to order imaging studies but not enough to read them. I don't think we are trained well enough to prescribe meds. Yes, we did do pharmacology in school and might know the indication of antiinflammatories better than GPs but we don't know the contraindications well enough.
As for confusing patients, most patients have been confused into thinking that GPs know more about orthopaedic injuries than PTs. Maybe a DPT would alleviate some of this confusion
Comparing a Ph.D. to a DPT is not a valid comparison. A Ph.D. is a research degree. A better comparison would be to a MD degree. I believe that a DPT degree should be as academically rigorous as an MD without trying to be an MD. I have no idea if current DPT programs meet this criteria.
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 7, 2002 4:54:00 AM
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anOHPT
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I'm all for advancing entry level education in our profession. That should be without question.
However, that still does not support the notion that the profession needs the title of DPT. As Bobcat so eloquently detailed, it seems to be merely a marketing gimmick to somehow differentiate us from the healthcare masses.
Forgive this analogy, I work in the auto industry- Everyone on this list may be familiar with the Pontiac Aztec. It is plainly a terrifically ugly car. They sit on lots collecting dust because precious few people are that dumb to buy one.
So, what does the General do? Not change the car fundamentally (akin to educational advacement in PT). They tweaked the nose a little, different taillights, fancier wheels Viola! It's now a Buick Rendezvous(think DPT)! No real change, but it looks better.
As for hating being told what to do, no one that I am aware of cares for that. I chafe everytime my wife tells me what to do but, hey! She's the boss!
If you want the status, the responsibility, the GIANT malpractice bills, you can be the boss. Move on up the trail to that profession.
This does not imply that we don't have valuable expertise in "screening" patients. I do that everyday. It is much different, however, than "diagnosing" and initiating entry into the medical system.
We are not going to change public and medical perceptions of our business with a name change. It will happen through educational superiority, solid scientific backing, hard work and... time.
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 7, 2002 6:20:00 AM
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PTupdate.com
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Bobcat, LOVED your response...couldn't have said it better myself.
Let us not forget that there is most likely significant financial gain to be made with movement into DPT. Costs of the PT education went up from BSPT to MPT, and now schools are able to offer "add on DPT", of course for a price! 7-8 years ago I questioned if I should return to school and obtain my MSPT. I chose not to, as the $15k it would cost, plus time, would be far better spent on purchasing my own reading material and learning myself...which it did.
Perhaps as someone else said, it is an ego thing. When I began interviewing MPT's years ago, they smugly stated "I have my Master's", and I never hesitated to inform them that they have an MPT, NOT an MSPT.
John Duffy, PT OCS [URL=http://www.PTupdate.com]www.PTupdate.com[/URL]
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 7, 2002 6:38:00 AM
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Diane
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Something I haven't seen mentioned here yet:
MDs are society's administrators in that they are designated, by themselves and by society, the responsibility for;
1. Signing a certificate of birth when a new human is born;
2. Signing a certificate of death when a human being dies.
Nothing can happen legally until such certificates are signed. Interlocked mechanisms, such as insurance claims, social insuramce numbers, valid income tax claims, pension elegibilty, all the ways that society knows itself and can identify its members or know when they are gone, all hinge on those pieces of paper, especially the death certificate.
The MDs are the "doorkeepers" of the body politic. It takes a certain sort of human to feel good about doing admittance and exit admin work for society. That's a job I can do without, which is why I'm content to earn my place in life as a PT with no special title beyond that, and no possibility of being confused with the doorkeepers.
Diane
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 7, 2002 9:08:00 AM
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anOHPT
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Diane,
Amen.
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 7, 2002 1:00:00 PM
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Andrew M. Ball MS MBA PT
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From: Chapel Hill
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Bobcat,
Either I've not explained myself fully, or my words are being twisted a little bit. Never, ever, did I suggest that physical therapists should practice medicine. You missed a prime word in my suggestion regarding an expanded role for rural practice, that is to say "emergency" rural health. I'm not suggesting that therapists should be trained to set-bones, deliver babies, administer life saving drugs as a primary care physician, but rather as a primary care practitioner acting under specific supervision (via video teleconf.) on a case-by-case, physician authorized basis.
By definition, that means integrated interdisciplinary practice, closely monitored by apartnering physician when no other options exist, and when the physician determines the situation to be a critical emergency. In other words, if the patient in any of these situations can't get to a physician or ambulance in time, a PT should be trained to act (within certain life-threatening and/or neuromusculoskeletal confines) as the hands of the physician until help arrives. Think of it as advanced first-responder training, to a level that should be expected of all healthcare professionals.
That very relationship implies concurrent communication (via telemedical technology), virtual direct physician supervision, and case-by-case physician authorization. As such, the point about teratomas or any other complication of the birth process is moot because those kinds of discussions would be handled by the physician . . . in such situations, the PT should NEVER be unsupervised.
NEVER, did I suggest (as some whacked out chiropractors do) that rural healthcare and the clinical title of doctor qualifies the non-medical practitioner to act dangerously independent manner in such situations. In that vein, your schedule vignette, although admittingly entertaining, isn't at all what I'm describing. The kind of PT or DC that abuses training in that manner will eventually find themselves, quite appropriately, behind bars.
Use of this training, of course, implies an evolution of the emergency healthcare system that, to be prepared to take advantage of, physical therapy education must address.
Increasing MD recruitment to rural areas is a nice idea, but hasn't panned out.Besides, insurance and other 3rd party payers have begun to realize that PCpracitioners such as PAs, NPs, etc. etc. are far less expensive to employ and/or reimburse than MD's . . . so from a health economics perspective, MD's aren't always the most desirable model for rural care.
You and I have agreed before regarding, "nagging absence of the clinical evidence base in addition to the absence of a cohesive scientific base," so I'll leave alone except to say that I find the lack of a dissertation and publication requirement distressing, as well as the lack of additional CLINICAL coursework in most DPT programs. If, for example, NDT training, for the purposes of not treatment, but evaluation of the neurologically impaired patient is deemed to critical in pediatrics, and McKenzie is viewed as important to orthopedic care . . . aren't THOSE kinds of courses more important to infuse into DPT programs than imaging, pharmacology, diff. dx. etc.?
"The DPT is not a research doctorate," I'm told, "it is a clinical doctorate, like an OD, PsyD, or DDS." Why then, are the courses added to MPT programs not CLINICAL courses??? An additional year of unstructured internship (at least no moreso than MPT affiliations) doesn't cut it. I agree.
Finally, and let me say very clearly that I've had more than one professional difference of opinion with Dr. Richardson, your characterization of her regarding this particular issue is unfair. Blaming her for what happened in 1998 (the BBA and the CMS cap) is kind of like blaming Ronald McDonald when you get a bad burger --- neither had ANY control over the situation. As a result, she did the only thing she could do --- react.
Say what you will about Dr. Richardson, but she is a woman of vision. True, I may not agree with it all the time, but I for one would rather have someone thinking about the future of the profession and how it can best position itself, than someone (like many of her predecessors), who were unable or unwilling to plan the future of the profession. Ironically, you (and many, many other PT's) unfairly charge her for not having been prepared when reality, she was one of the only APTA presidents who ever looked far enough into the future to possibly have been prepared. She was, to her downfall, the victim of very, very, unfortunate timing.
As for her background, not everyone could, or should be Jack Turman, PT, Ph.D. Here's a basic scientist who will very likely one day win the nobel prize, but at the same time his research has been largely ignored by the rank-and-file of physical therapy profession, and many in academics. Are you suggesting that we need more people like this in the profession? I do . . . but keep in mind that many such people (and I'm not necessarily speaking of Jack specifically) don't really continue to think of themselves as PT's and those that do have right to be awfully bitter about the way that their clinical profession treats them.
A Ph.D. ANY Ph.D. trainees the candidate in research methods relative to the field of study. So what if that's education? Are you suggesting that we don't need people in our profession examining issues of education, business administration, or public health relative to PT? All of these folks learn research methods, just not basic science research methods.
I can't argue with your assessment of Dr. Richardson teaching the imaging course. I question that too, but I don't know what kinds of experiences she's had, but I will say that agents of change don't often have unyielding support from optimal people until YEARS later. As a result, she may not have had the ability to hire a radiologist to teach the course, so (and I'm making up a story here) maybe she did some training and did the best she could with respect to her vision regarding DPTs and radiographic imaging. I don't know. The point is, neither do you.
Finally, I take offense to your implication that a Ph.D. whatever the focus, doesn't teach the candidate how to apply the scientific method, and application to clinical practice.
Drew
[This message has been edited by Andrew M. Ball MS MBA PT (edited May 07, 2002).]
[This message has been edited by Andrew M. Ball MS MBA PT (edited May 08, 2002).]
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 7, 2002 3:32:00 PM
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Bournephysio
Posts: 585
Joined: April 25, 2002
From: Calgary
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anOHPT: I think a better comparison would be an Acura dealer who sets up shop in a deserted part of town, doesn’t put a sign up, and the only advertisements say that his cars are of ok quality, with half decent engines, and are kind of comfortable.
I think that we provide a great service. We have to get out and market ourselves better. A DPT may or may not be a part of this.
As for marketing, the doctor title is being used against us. Just look at Chiroweb.
You stated:
“As for hating being told what to do, no one that I am aware of cares for that. I chafe everytime my wife tells me what to do but, hey! She's the boss!
If you want the status, the responsibility, the GIANT malpractice bills, you can be the boss. Move on up the trail to that profession.”
Where I work, the doctor isn’t my boss. I don’t have to do what the doctor says. We are both part of the patient’s health care team. I’m actually fairly happy with my current status (although I am worried about the future). I do have the responsibility. My malpractice insurance cost me around $120 last year(Canadian that’s like $25 American [IMG]http://www.rehabedge.com/forums/smile.gif[/IMG]. I don’t wish to be an MD and don’t view it as being up the trail.
You also stated: “This does not imply that we don't have valuable expertise in "screening" patients. I do that everyday. It is much different, however, than "diagnosing" and initiating entry into the medical system.”
This I don’t get. What is magical about how an MD makes a diagnosis? Do you not think that it would be more efficient for you to see a patient with a back strain before the MD? What if you are covering an athletic event. Do you need a doctor to look at an injury on the field before you? If you are able to screen patients, you should know when you can treat and when you can refer.
“We are not going to change public and medical perceptions of our business with a name change. It will happen through educational superiority, solid scientific backing, hard work and... time.”
I would hope that this would be enough but I’m not sure that it is.
In Canada it looks like we are moving towards specialization instead of a DPT. I don’t know if this is any better. Saying that we are specialists may be more confusing.
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Re: Should DPT's be called "Doctor"? - May 8, 2002 2:42:00 AM
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OSUPT
Posts: 45
Joined: April 15, 2002
Status: offline
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You bring up an interesting point, Bournephysio, about moving towards specialization. For those of you who aren't sold on the DPT idea, do you feel that clinical specialist certification would be a better way for a therapist to advance his/her scientific knowledge and clinical skills? Or is it apples and oranges? I know there are several people with these credentials that read the board, and I'd be interested in hearing your views.
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